Eric Wallace has only been back in Australia for two days, and he knows he’s got a limited amount of time to impress in order to stay here.

The former American college basketballer has fallen in love with the AFL and wants to make a career out of it. He was one of 10 international athletes to attend and test at October's NAB AFL Draft Combine.

“I’d watched a game earlier in the year and my agent told me about the US combine in LA. I was going to try out for American Football but didn’t get out there. After I finished my college basketball, I wanted to continue to play sport professionally and this came up,” Wallace told kangaroos.com.au. 

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“They liked the way I handed myself and I tested pretty well, so I came out to the AFL Combine in Australia and now here I am with a chance to work out with North Melbourne.

“It’s different, but the players and all the coaches have been welcoming. There’s a really great atmosphere here.”

After the Combine in October, Wallace headed home unsure if he’d get the chance to play Aussie Rules.

“There might have been 30 minutes of discouragement. I’m an optimistic person…I always kept my head up…

“I had a call on Wednesday asking if I could come back out. I got on the plane on Friday morning and got to Australia on Sunday. It’s a two-day travel but it’s worth it when you look at the opportunity.”

He’s been an avid follower of the game for much of the year and admits to Tweeting regularly with other AFL fans.

The soon to be 24-year old has had two training sessions with North and says he enjoys the contact more than anything else. On Tuesday, he spent much of the day battling with ruckman Daniel Currie with the pair competing in contested marking and ruck duels.

“That felt like home…I felt like I caught on to that really quickly,” he said.